Radio New Zealand's Nine to Noon recently interviewed Tim Martin from Auckland about
his fantastic small garden of less than 100m2 that is producing an endless supply
of fruit and produce, and providing a lot of personal satisfaction as well. More >>

The garden is not only a wonderful place for kids to be kids, but at the same time
they learn about growing healthy and fresh food. They also get the message about
the benefits that come from putting in a little bit of effort. More >>

This week we have something for everyone. Tam and Soph's Mum from Taupo has this
recipe for fabric softener. "I have had more than one washing machine repairman tell
me that commercial fabric softener is their 'dream product' as it stuffs your machine ... More >>

Temperatures are on the way down and our daylight hours are about to get one hour
shorter. This has created an unusual problem for Paul from Northland who has this
question: "The colder weather is bringing uninvited guests into the house - ... More >>

With the sunny season coming to an end it’s time to fill your pantry shelves and
freezer with food to last you though to the next growing season. It is a matter of
dollars and sense for the frugal family because fruit and vegetables are cheapest ... More >>

It’s Christmas and that’s a time for oily rag households to breakout the home
brew and celebrate their frugality with low cost feasts. Here are some ideas for
summer treats using fruit that is in-season and plentiful. More >>

Another month year is about to come to an end, which means oily rag households will
be getting busy planning for the special day. Fortunately the oily rag community
has sent through lots of ideas about low-cost gift giving to make Christmas frugal ... More >>

It seems like the coldest week of the year so we through we would cheer things up
by thinking about spring gardening - which is just a few weeks away. But first, here's
a question from oily ragger Noreen. “Has anybody any tips on how I can prevent ... More >>

Here are some of the many tips we have received recently. Happy Harry from Whangarei
has this tip. “I was buying some nails at Bunnings the other day. I needed 2000
(it was a big handyman job!) so I bought 2 boxes of 1000 each. The friendly chap ... More >>

Here are some of the many tips we have received recently. Greenfingers from Wellsford
says coffee grounds are a good growing medium for mushrooms. Meg from Te Puke says,
“Set aside part of your garden to grow flowers with long stems. This could save ... More >>

The winter chill has set in so oily rag households have the wood burning stoves stoked
up and the slow cookers brewing warm winter meals. An oily rag family up north said
although the power was out for three days during a recent storm they cooked delicious ... More >>

We have had lots of mail regarding last week’s column about chooks. Karen from
Morrinsville writes, “I was smiling from ear to ear reading about hens/poultry.
We have 15 head of poultry at the moment- some roosters and some hens mostly about ... More >>

Last week the Government released its Budget, so we thought this week we would deliver
our Oily Rag Budget! While the number of zeros attached to the numbers is not up
to the size of government, the principles are the same: spend less than you earn ... More >>

Winter is on the way, which means household power bills are about to rise as space
heating costs kick in. The other thing that’s about to kick in is a new round of
power price rises. Genesis for example, said that the increase would be 3.6% nationally ... More >>